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Feeling God’s Presence: How to Connect With Him
The maples stood barren—as if they were waiting for a fresh breath from heaven. Gazing into their spindly arms, I realized my soul felt much the same. I wanted nothing more than to start feeling God’s presence again. “God, why do you seem so distant? Why don’t I sense your presence?” I prayed. Feeling God’s Presence As I sat in the silence, my mind returned to a crystal clear Tuesday evening years ago. In a single instant, I learned more about God and love than I’d gleaned in a whole lifetime. After nine long months of suffering through a debilitating diagnosis of hyperemesis gravidarum (mostly couch-ridden and sipping sports drinks…
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How to Have Faith in God During Hard Times
February came in waves of smoky grey. Patches of blackened snow lined the country roads, and overcast skies cast dim shadows. I was desperate for a quiet reminder about how to have faith in God during hard times. I went to the woods to find hope on a monochrome afternoon. Perhaps God’s created world would somehow breathe life into my faltering faith. Beneath the oaks, my mind drifted to the words penned by Henry David Thoreau: “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when…
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4 Ways God Wants to Transform Your Mind for Deeper Joy
Wolf Creek is overflowing its banks, and this normally languorous stream is raging with terrifying ferocity. The ice that covered the creek all winter is breaking up and crashing downstream with thunderous intensity. It seems this quiet creek is resisting the transformation, and I get to thinking that letting God transform your mind often requires a similar kind of reshaping. Letting God Transform Your Mind Listening closely, I hear a guttural grinding noise coming from the depths of the creek. I watch as a crack in the submerged ice layer widens, eventually allowing an enormous chunk to break free and cascade downstream. One piece at a time, the ice is…
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What to Do When You Feel Spiritually Empty: 5 Steps
Are you struggling with what to do when you feel spiritually empty? Most of us face times of spiritual dryness. The disciplines that once helped us feel connected to God stop working. Instead of feeling life-giving, they begin to feel empty and dry. Today, we’ll talk about what to do when you feel spiritually empty. I invite you to join me as I gaze out the window feeling apathetic and disconnected from God on a cold winter morning. What to Do When You Feel Spiritually Empty The golden abundance of autumn has been swallowed by the monochrome grey of winter now. As I gaze into the ashen landscape, I wrestle…
